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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. hand — in cards
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. present — the time now
  8. chip — for betting
  9. ball — a great time
  10. hand — help
  11. spring — the season
  12. present — there
  13. ball — a dance
  14. spring — of water
  15. bore — to drill
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fall — the season
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bore — to tire
  22. spring — a coil
  23. present — a gift
  24. lie — to recline

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com